An innovative thought that later became an award winning invention on the Utilization of Solar Ultraviolet Radiation for Water Disinfection Applications by a research team from the German Jordanian University.

The award was handed to the team during a prestigious ceremony under the patronage of Mr. Waleed Asfoor, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Philadelphia University, in the presence of HE Pro. Adnan Badran, HE Prof. Marwan Kamal, the President of GJU Prof. Manar Fayyad, and a group of academic leaders and scholars from Jordan. The ceremony was held on Sunday April 21, 2019, at the Royal Cultural Center in Amman.

A shield was awarded to the team leader, inventor, and GJU Associate Professor Ammar Alkhalidi. Team members and inventors: Dr. Samir Arabassi, Engineer Abeer Abu-Othman and Engineer Tariq Sabanikh, all received certificates of appreciation for their efforts in creating this important invention to disinfect water through solar radiation with the main purpose to ensure affordable access to clean water for all.

The Invention

A device was invented to be installed on water pipes where it would disinfect contaminated water with pathogens by focusing ultraviolet light from the renewable solar radiation.

The device ensures the supply of constant sterile water at constant quantities, unlike the old water solar disinfection methods that suffer from prolonged periods of treatment and small quantities of water.

The old treatment methods in areas that suffer from polluted drinking water rely on filling plastic pots with water and leaving them on rooftops all day to disinfect. This invention offers hope remote and rural areas that suffer from severe scarcity in drinking water and lack the renewable sources of energy necessary to operate traditional water treatment methods.

The system was built from wood available everywhere and equipment such as concentrators and optical filters, which were purchased which were purchased online at a minimal cost. If required, the concentrators and filters are light in weight, can be laid flat, and can be can be transported easily to be assembled wood locally available and constricted by any local carpenter.

The Inventors

Inventor Dr. Ammar Ahmed Alkhalidi is an Associate Professor at the Department of Energy Engineering in the German Jordanian University of Jordan; he received his BSc in 2004 and MSc in 2006 both in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Jordan. Dr. Alkhalidi completed his PhD in Mechanical Engineering (Energy) from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee in 2011.

The PhD dissertation was on saving energy in a waste water tank by improving the efficiency of the air diffuser produced by the ATT-Center. The creative design of the new air publisher has been patented by the US Patent Office.

Inventor Dr. Samir Arabassi is an Assistant Professor at the Physics Department in the German Jordanian University who has published a plethora of scientific papers in modern and applied physics.

Inventor Engineer Abeer Abu-Othman is a laboratory instructor from the Water and Environmental Department at the German Jordanian University; she received her BSc and MSc in the Water and Energy field.

Inventor Engineer Tariq Sabanikh received his BSc in civil Engineering and is currently working on his MSc in Energy Engineering at the German Jordanian University.